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High Men
, | worker = | worker_output = | rebel = | pop_growth = basic per turn. | standard_units = | racial_units = | restrictions = Available: Available on Shore: Not Available: }} The High Men race is one of the 14 different humanoid Races found in the world of Master of Magic. High Men originate from the plane of Arcanus. Dedicated society-builders and authorities on matters of religion and politics, High Men are an advanced race. Without their institutions, High Men have a regrettably weak position. Cloaked in guilds, religion, and military orders, High Men become a force of nature. High Men start with no glaring disadvantages, save for this: that none of their advantages are in play yet! With baseline production levels, population growth, costs, and starting units, a High Men Fortress usually begins with a hard trek ahead, with their purely ordinary civilization surrounded on all sides by the extraordinary. If they can break out of this malaise, the rewards start piling up. High Men have one of the very best selections of Normal Units. They have access to the heavy infantry unit Pikemen, the mighty Warship, and can train Priests. Their Magicians have great damage and resilience. But their real strength lies with their unique heavy cavalry, the Paladins. Mounted, knightly warriors supported by holy rites, Paladins can wage battles completely out-of-reach for most other units — particularly those where magical forms of attack and crowd control are present. Description Physical Features High Men are one of the Human races, and are genetically similar to the Barbarians and Nomads. High Men are distinguished from their kin as having a pale to florid complexion and gentler mannerisms. They bear the mark of a more sedentary, closed life. They lack the others' wanderlust, being quite at home in the rigid confines of their walls and laws. Society High Men society and government runs the gamut. For every political system under the sun, some group of High Men have at some point, in some place, tried it out. In the art of adapting their ideology to convenience, High Men are acknowledged professionals, surpassed only by Orcs. Generally the existing Town Buildings and ongoing projects give an indication of who is in charge in a particular High Men town. Smaller towns are the fief of a feudal lord. They struggle to get infrastructure in place and consolidate farmers and fighting men from the surrounding lands. Well-connected river and coastal cities often sport shipbuilding and trade guilds and are run by merchant-oligarchs. There are also freewheeling strongholds of mages and scholarly councils. Real power is concentrated, though, in Bishoprics (cities which have built a Cathedral) under the command of the High Men's holy Church. The Church is the High Men's ultimate social institution, a labyrinth of intrigue and dogma which has guided the race safely through countless dangers. Its strength and influence can only be guessed; the champions Roland and Elana, and even the wizard-priestess Ariel are all protégés of this organization. By quietly attaching productive and military arms to the Church in select towns, a Wizard can train some of the mightiest mortal warriors, the Paladins, to further his own ambitions. Power-brokering aside, High Men generally emphasize cooperation and pursue fair policies. They enjoy a solid diplomatic position among the races, with some genuine allies and friends. Army Most of the High Men army are basic units without any advantage, and therefore will require more units to defend or attack. This problem is oppressive in the early stages, but rest assured, it will recede. Later on, High Men begin fielding "heavy" versions of the most commonly-seen military units; for instance, they use Pikemen, Warships, and Priests instead of Halberdiers, Galleys, and Shamans. And of course, their end-stage heavy cavalry is in a league of its own. Army List Below is a comparative list of all High Men Normal Units. This list shows all units at their first , with no additional modifiers or magical effects. Force Composition To call High Men Spearmen cannon-fodder may be an insult to the Spearmen of other races, but these units are as cheap as they come and can be built to follow one's army and garrison a captured town, quelling interracial unrest there if applicable. This is a viable build in all stages and should be considered more of a sort of -consuming economic building than a military unit. The low-tier units should quickly (if not immediately) give way to Pikemen once a Fighters' Guild is up, and Warships and Paladins will cover all needs later on. High Men Settlers High Men Settlers are a type of Normal Unit, identical to the baseline template. This unit may be created from a High Men town, for the Construction Cost of . Creation of a Settlers unit reduces the town's population by 1. Lacking virtually any combat capabilities, this unit's only real purpose is to create a new High Men Settlement, by traveling to the desired location and giving it the "Build" command. High Men Settlers require an Upkeep Cost of and to maintain. High Men Engineers This unit may be created from a High Men town, for the Construction Cost of . The town must already contain a Builders' Hall for this to be possible. The primary purpose of High Men Engineers is to build Roads across your empire. This is done by sending the Engineers to a tile where you want a road constructed, and giving them the order to "Build". The process takes several turns, and is sped up when several Engineers go to work on the same tile. On the other hand, High Men Engineers make very poor combat units, with only a token Melee Attack and almost no Defense. Like all Engineers they may however assist during siege combat, by using their Wall Crusher ability to bring down enemy City Walls. High Men Spearmen This unit may be created from any High Men town, for the Construction Cost of . Like all Spearmen, High Men Spearmen are a very basic combat unit which doesn't pose much of a threat to any serious opponent, though they can become a little stronger through Experience. As with all units belonging to the High Men race, High Men Spearmen possess no special racial bonuses or abilities to elevate them beyond the basic Spearmen template. As a result however they are cheaper to produce, so large armies of them can be created fairly easily. High Men Spearmen require an Upkeep Cost of only to maintain. High Men Swordsmen This unit may be created at a High Men town, for the Construction Cost of . The town must already contain both a Barracks and a Smithy for this to be possible. Like all Swordsmen, High Men Swordsmen are a fairly basic combat unit, capable of holding its own in a fight with other Normal Units, especially after gaining some Experience. It also enjoys a Large Shield bonus which gives it some protection from Ranged Attacks. As with all units belonging to the High Men race, High Men Swordsmen possess no special racial bonuses or abilities to elevate them beyond the basic Swordsmen template. As a result however they are cheaper to produce, so large armies of them can be created fairly easily. High Men Swordsmen require an Upkeep Cost of and to maintain. High Men Pikemen This unit may be created at a High Men town, for the Construction Cost of . The town must already contain an Fighters' Guild for this to be possible. Like all Pikemen, High Men Pikemen represent the epitome of infantry. They possess a very powerful , whose strength is greatly increased thanks to this unit containing . Furthermore, this attack has the Armor Piercing property, which makes it very difficult to defend against. This unit also stands up very well to enemy Cavalry and other First Strike units. As with all units belonging to the High Men race, High Men Pikemen possess no special racial bonuses. High Men Pikemen require an Upkeep Cost of and to maintain. High Men Cavalry This unit may be created at a High Men town, for the Construction Cost of . The town must already contain both a Barracks and a Stables for this to be possible. Like all Cavalry, High Men Cavalry are a fast-moving Melee Attack unit, capable of quick strikes through or around the enemy line. Its attack has First Strike properties, which allows it to hit its enemies first during battle, potentially killing some of them before they can retaliate. As with all units belonging to the High Men race, High Men Cavalry possess no special racial bonuses or abilities to elevate them beyond the basic Cavalry template. As a result however they are cheaper to produce, so large armies of them can be created fairly easily. High Men Cavalry requires an Upkeep Cost of and to maintain. High Men Priests This unit may be created from a High Men town, for the Construction Cost of . The town must already contain a Parthenon for this to be possible. High Men Priests provide a somewhat-powerful as well as a slightly-weaker Melee Attack - though the unit is normally too fragile to participate in direct combat. More importantly, Priests attached to an army can quickly heal damage units after any battle, and can also cast the Healing spell during battle to heal friendly units. They also have the innate ability to Purify Corrupted tiles. High Men Priests are also somewhat resistant to Curses and other maledictions. High Men Priests require an Upkeep Cost of and to maintain. High Men Magicians High Men Magicians are identical to the Magicians baseline template, except for one important difference: the unit contains instead of 4. This effectively translates to a 50% higher damage output during combat, and also means that a High Men Magicians unit can take more effort to destroy. Paladins Paladins are a type of Normal Unit. This unit is unique to the High Men Race, and can only be built in High Men towns, for the Construction Cost of . The town must already contain both an Armorers' Guild and a Cathedral for this to be possible. Paladins are shock cavalry, and are some of the most powerful Normal Units in the game. They possess several powerful abilities which make both themselves and the army they are in significantly more powerful. First and foremost, Paladins are completely Immune to Magic, and will thus shrug off most spells and . Their Melee Attack has the ability to Pierce Armor and, if used properly, can also utilize First Strike, to wipe out enemy units before they can even react. In addition, Paladins are very Resistant to Curses and other ill effects, and can potentially become immune to them. During battle, all friendly units in the army (including the Paladins themselves) receive Holy Bonus: , and . Catapult Catapults have a Ranged Attack that can be used to damage even highly-armored enemy units, but is primarily used for destroying walls during siege combat at an enemy town. Trireme The Trireme is a Ship which can transport up to 2 units across bodies of water, and can travel at a fairly good rate. Early in the game, Triremes can help empires expand rapidly across short continental gaps or large inland seas. This is very important for High Men empires, particularly when looking for suitable races to conquer before the mid-game phase occurs. Triremes are not very effective in combat. If one is lost, and units it was transporting at the time will sink with it, so it is important to avoid combat. Try not to rely on these for long trans-oceanic journeys. Galley The Galley is a strong transport Ship, which can carry up to 5 units across Oceans quite rapidly. This is a good ship to have in the later game, when an empire is expanding into or has gained a foothold on another continent. This will be important for more High Men empires as they run out of races to conquer on their home continent, or for rapid colonization across the water. Galleys are fairly good in combat, is quite tough, and can be relied upon to transport troops over larger distances. Nonetheless, if a Galley does sink, all units it was transporting will immediately drown. Warship High Men possess sufficient naval technology to construct the Warship, and are one of only a few races that can do so. The Warship is an ocean-going combat vessel with very good combat properties. Warships possess a Long Range which can be used indefinitely during combat. Their amazing speed allows them to effectively maneuver while doing this, meaning that they can potentially wipe out entire armies on their own. With certain types of magic, it can also form the basis of one of the strongest strategies available for winning the game. Furthermore, Warships can also transport 2 units, so they can be used as a very safe means of moving entire armies across oceans. They will usually become a very important asset to any High Men empire that has expanded to a remote continent. Citizens All High Men Towns contain High Men citizens. These have the same output of most other citizens, at , per Farmer, and per Worker. High Men citizens look like this: : High Men Farmer. : High Men Worker. : High Men Rebel. Technology The High Men possess renaissance-level institutions and technology, and perhaps no other race is quite as reliant on city specialization as they are. As their population growth rate is not penalized, High Men have an edge over many races in building centers of , , , and raw . As they also lack distinctive racial traits, returns on these investments are good, and there is an onus on the Wizard to drive his Men to catch up with and surpass rival economies. It goes without saying that the advanced High Men military units are the real prize. They deliver the payback for all those years this race has to spend mucking around with buildings. Only the Fantastic Stable, a source of flying mounts, is unavailable to High Men. With an otherwise full suite, this race can make excellent use of land and resources as it matures. The following table compares the total potential output of High Men citizens to how they begin initially, taking into account the full extent of the race's Town Building development branches, and assuming a Tax Rate of . The Building Chart The chart below shows all Town Buildings that can be constructed in High Men towns, as well as the buildings that cannot be constructed. It also shows the requirements to construct each building. Interracial Relations High Men are diplomatic. They serve and govern other races better than most. Unfortunately, when playing as this race it is rather difficult to make use of the advantage early through conquest. Whereas, neutral High Men towns make great targets for conquest by various empires. High Men suffer no tensions with Dwarves, Halflings, High Elves, Nomads, Orcs, and their fellow High Men. While a Wizard's Fortress is inside a town belonging to any one of these races, High Men towns belonging to this Wizard feel no racial antagonism toward his government, and accordingly suffer no adverse effect to their Unrest levels. Similarly, these races will suffer no additional unrest under a High Men government. The level of Unrest in any such towns is based only on the current Tax Rate and other external factors. High Men are no exception to the universal inability to communicate with the Klackon hivemind, and the dread of Dark Elves, but they are nonetheless able to comport with many races considered difficult to deal with. The table below breaks down all race relations regarding High Men empires. The same values are used for High Men towns controlled by empires of different races. If you possess the Move Fortress spell, or come into a situation where you are allowed to relocate your Fortress at will, this can be useful if High Men figure into the issue. Unless the planes are lopsidedly populated by Klackons or Dark Elves, a High Men town makes a good target for a diverse empire's new Fortress, to minimize the Unrest in each of its other towns. Complementary Magic Life The offers impressive advantages to empires based around multi-figure Normal Units. As an Armor Piercing unit, High Men Pikemen are a very good target for the Lionheart spell; they also benefit greatly from Heroism, Altar of Battle, and Crusade. High Men Engineers become a lot more efficient when enchanted with the Endurance spell. Nature Water Walking and Path Finding are excellent additions to a Hero + Paladins stack seeking to dominate the planes. Regeneration certainly doesn't hurt, either. Stone Skin and Iron Skin work quite well with the strong but somewhat fragile High Men Pikemen and High Men Magicians. Due to the poor combat AI, Web isn't actually necessary to let you engage flying units with your melee troops, but it does help your Cavalry and Paladins take advantage of First Strike. Combined with the deep High Men technology tree, Change Terrain, Transmute, and Gaia's Blessing allow the development of surprisingly awesome cities. One of the main benefits of Nature, however, are the effective Common and Uncommon summons, which can allow a High Men player to focus on building their city, while using summoned units for early military needs. Sorcery magic offers the abusive Warship + Invisibility (Spell) + Flight combination. If that's inexplicably not enough, Haste lets you get off about twice as many shots. Paladins with Invisibility (Spell) and/or Flight can also cut a wide swath through an opponent's army, and even the humble Guardian Wind mostly shores up their main weakness. Chaos can gradually replace reliance on High Men Normal Units with some of the strongest Fantastic Units in the game. Until those units become available, High Men Normal Units with extra can benefit from Chaos Channels for some very destructive units. Conversely, Chaos also provides excellent Common and Uncommon summons that can be used to cover military needs in the early game while resources are focused on developing the costly but powerful High Men buildings. Death is a solid choice for High Men empires. Since they can build the full suite of power-producing and unrest-suppressing buildings, Dark Rituals is maximally effective and minimally painful. And thanks to their powerful First Strike attack, Paladins are an excellent target for the Berserk spell once they have arrived at the enemy lines. Finally, the opportunity cost of missing out on is smaller than usual — you already get Healing from Priests and even Holy Bonus from Paladins. Category:Races Category:Arcanian Races Category:High Men